Live To Serve Serve To Live
by Black Tie Affair
Summary: Semi AU- Kagome falls through the well to find a world where demons rule over humans. Kagome refuses to become a slave, but can't get back home. She is forced to serve the one no one can get along with, because of what he is.
1. Into The Well

Author's Notes: Starting a new fic…This is the first one I've actually posted so, I'm a bit nervous. It's kind of like seeing your child off to their first day of school…Haha, okay so it's not like that, but hey! Anyways, here's the story!

Live To Serve…Serve To Live

Chapter One: Into the Well

By: Black Heart

"Kagome! Time for breakfast!"

"Okay, Mom," Kagome called back down the stairs. She grabbed her necklace; a pink stone strung on a simple silver chain. Her mother had given it to her, and it had been passed down from mother to daughter for years. In a hurry to get down to breakfast, she threw the necklace on. But when she went to secure it, the clasp snapped. 

"Oh, crap…Mom should be able to fix it though…Right?" Kagome muttered to herself. She tossed the broken piece of jewelry into a hunter green velvet box on her desk, and ran downstairs. Seeing her breakfast set at the table, she hurried over and began eating. Looking up, Kagome saw her Grandpa sit down at the table. 

"Good morning, Kagome," he said.

"Hi, Grandpa," she chirped back. Kagome's mother brought Grandpa's breakfast over to the table.

"Kagome, where's your necklace?" she asked, slightly concerned.

"Oh, um, when I went to put on my necklace, I did it so fast, that the chain broke…I'm sorry, Mom. You can get it fixed though, right?" Kagome explained in a rush. A light blush crept onto her face, and she was becoming worried. Even though the stone didn't mean much to her, Kagome knew her mother had grown pretty attached to it.

"It was just the chain? That's a relief. That stone is fairly valuable, Kagome. It has a quite a bit of history, along with this shrine."

Kagome was a little surprised. Normally her Grandpa was the history nut. But, right on cue, he went into one of his rambling explanations. 

"You know, the stone on that necklace is a replica of the Shikon no Tama. It-"

"The Shikon what?" Kagome interrupted.

"The Shikon no Tama. It was a powerful stone. The Jewel of Four Souls some called it. It contained four spirits of the world. It was created during the very early feudal times of Japan, by a priestess named Midoriko. The jewel was born from her heart, and while fighting her greatest battle, a crystallized soul was taken from her Midoriko as she died. Within that single soul, the battle between purity and corruption continues. The jewel will become more powerful if hatred is involved, but it will disappear if used for good. It has the power to make dreams come true. It can give life, and cause death," Grandpa finished. But of course, Kagome had stopped paying attention a sentence or two after she'd interrupted the explanation… By now, she had finished her breakfast, and wanted to get to school. 

"Kagome, if you bring your necklace down from your room, I'll take it to be fixed today, while I'm running my errands," Mrs. Higurashi offered. 

"Okay, Mom," Kagome said, before running upstairs. She grabbed the Shikon Jewel look alike, while glancing out the window. She noticed her little brother, Souta, chasing the family's fat cat, Buyo around the yard. Leaving her room, Kagome jogged back downstairs. Setting the necklace on the table where her mother would be sure to see it, Kagome asked, "Could you put it in that fuzzy green box in my room, please?"

"Sure, dear," her mother responded.

"Thanks, Mom. I'm off to school, bye!" Kagome called as she began walking out the front door.

"Have a nice day! Her mother called back. Kagome gently shut the door and was about to begin the walk to school, when she spotted Souta nervously standing in the doorway to the well. Making her way over she half yelled, "What's wrong, Souta? You know you shouldn't be playing around here."

"But, Buyo…" Souta trailed off.

"Did he run in there when you were chasing him?" Kagome asked.

"I think I saw him down there."

"Well let's go get him," she decided.

"But this place is creepy!" Souta exclaimed. 

"Are you scared?" Kagome taunted.

"N-No," he stuttered. They heard a moaning noise from inside the well, and Souta jumped back.

"There's something down there!" He shouted. 

"Yea, our cat, Buyo," Kagome pointed out. Walking down the stairs, Kagome muttered, "It's only the cat, and I'll prove it- Ah!" She jumped and screamed out in shock. Souta had fallen down in surprise. Buyo was rubbing against Kagome's legs. "Told you it was just the cat," she said to her brother. Suddenly a bright blue light shinned from the well.

"Kagome!" Souta shouted in warning, as he leapt up from the ground. The well broke open and white arms popped out. They grabbed Kagome and pulled her into the well. As they traveled though more of the bright blue light, Kagome counted six ugly pale arms gripping her. 

"I can feel the power of the Shikon no Tama! You must have it!" The odd woman shouted.

"The Shikon-," 'My necklace!' Kagome realized with a gasp. 'That must not be some replica…But the real thing!' "I don't have it!" She yelled. Kagome tried pushing the odd lady away. As her hand made contact with the multi-armed woman, a powdery pink light appeared.

"No! I will have get the Shikon no Tama from you!" The lady cried. It looked like she was being dragged away. Kagome fell to the bottom of the well. 

'Was that all a dream?' She thought to herself. She looked around the well and saw one of the monster's pale arms. 'It wasn't a dream!'

"Souta?" Kagome called. "Help me out of here!" There wasn't a response. 'He must have run away,' she concluded. Kagome looked up, trying to determine how she was going to get out of the well. She spotted some vines growing down the side of the well. As she started her climb up, a butterfly fluttered past. 'I wonder how a butterfly got in here,' Kagome thought to herself as she continued the climb. Pulling herself out, she stood up and looked around. 

"What? This isn't…Mama? Grandpa…Souta…Buyo? Our house has vanished!" Kagome began dashing around the area, desperately looking for something familiar. "Oh, good, the Sacred Tree," Kagome noticed with a sigh of relief. "Our house should be around here somewhere." She stopped suddenly when she saw someone with white hair hanging from the tree. No, wait they were pinned, by a single arrow. Cautiously walking up to the tree, Kagome stood on a root and realized it was a boy. With dog-ears? Without thinking, she reached out to touch them. "They're very soft," Kagome noted. Suddenly, the young girl heard what sounded like battle cries. Turning to the source, Kagome found what looked like monsters charging strait at her. Some looked like birds, wolves, cats, and many other vicious animals. But they weren't quite animals…Kagome didn't quite know just how to explain their appearances. All she knew was that they were coming to attack, and it looked like she was their target. 

AN: Well that's the first chapter…It's a little odd at first, because it's just like the anime beginning, but that was the point…Except for the demons chasing Kagome. Originally it was the village men. But anyways, I should get the new chapter out soon, like in a week tops! Thanks for reading!


	2. Enter Inuyasha

Author's Note: Sorry! I know I should have updated, but I had a horse show last weekend and I was supposed to have another one this weekend, but we ended up not going at the last minute because we couldn't find a trainer (my trainer's mommy just died so she's a lil out of it…) and then I had to go help at a different horse show this weekend and oh yes! My mom had her kidney stone that apparently she's had for years removed and it took 2 operations, and now she's stuck in the hospital for a while. Hopefully she can come home this week though…And now I can't upload this chapter because either fanfic.net is being dumb or my Internet's being dumb or something. So that's my list of excuses. On the bright side though, I got my Inuyasha movie, AND I saw Pirates of the Caribbean, which is now one of my favs. Again I'm sorry…And thank you for all of the reviews!! I wasn't sure about the story but apparently people liked it so I'm going to keep going!! So here's chapter two. 

Live To Serve…Serve To Live

Chapter Two: Enter Inuyasha

By: Black Heart

Last Time: Kagome knew one thing. The monsters were charging to attack, and she was their target. 

~*~

Kagome froze for a few seconds, then came to her senses, and ran. She dashed behind the Sacred Tree, and realized she had no where to go. But she took off anyways, into the forest. Glancing back, Kagome noticed the monsters were avoiding the tree where the white haired boy hung. Running away, she figured how she could make a big circle back to it. Hopefully she would be able to get back to the tree before the demons could catch up to her. Kagome made a sharp ninety-degree turn, and kept running for a minute, then made another ninety-degree turn. She was getting close to the big tree. The demons began slowing down and were becoming more hesitant to continue the chase. Finally reaching it, Kagome jumped up onto one of the tree's humungous roots. Giving up, the monsters ran around her and back into the woods. Turning her attention back to her savior, who by the looks of it, had no idea he had just saved anyone, Kagome noticed the arrow again.

'Wonder what happened to him,' she thought to herself. Without realizing what she was doing, Kagome reached up towards the arrow. Grasping it, she slowly pulled it out. Expecting some sort of big reaction, she braced herself. But nothing happened. After a few moments though, the boy's eyelids began to flutter open. When they caught sight of Kagome, they widened in shock, then narrowed in suspicion. 

"Kikyou," he hissed.

"Are you talking to me? I'm not Kikyou," Kagome answered, confused. 

"Of course you are. You pinned me here for those demons, and now you're going to pay," the boy threatened.

"What are you talking about? I don't know whom you or this Kikyou are. I-"

"Oh, so you've forgotten your name as well as your betrayal to me. How convenient," he interrupted with a sneer. 

"What? No, my name's Kagome, and I don't have any idea where I am, how I got here, or why I'm here. Who are you anyways?" Kagome said, all in one breath. The young man began to study her. 

'Her hair's not pulled back, and it seems shorter…Kikyou's face doesn't light up like that, even if she is arguing with someone, and her eyes definitely don't have that sparkle. And what's up with her clothes…Isn't that kimono a little too short?'

"Well, you don't look like Kikyou, but you still seem like her…" Suddenly, jumping next to her, he smelled her.

"What are you doing?" Kagome quickly asked becoming alarmed. 

"And you don't smell like her." The mysterious sat on one of the roots from the giant tree. 

"Okay, time out," Kagome said, determined to figure this out. "What's your name?"

Glaring at Kagome, he asked "Why?"

"So I can understand what's going on," she exclaimed, becoming exasperated. 

"Inuyasha," he said gruffly. 

"Inuyasha…" Kagome repeated. 'Dog demon,' she thought to herself. "Could you do me a favor and explain where I am?"

"Feh…I don't do anything for humans."

"Okay, you're a demon, but shouldn't you look more like those demons that were chasing me? Or maybe those weren't demons…" Kagome mused. Inuyasha suddenly got aver rigid look on his face. "What?" She asked. Inuyasha stood up and began walking away. 

"What? Wait!" She called, running after him. Jumping in front of Inuyasha, Kagome put her hands out to stop him. He halted, but still had that look on his face. What was stopping him from tearing this girl to pieces, like he had done to so many humans before her. Was it the way she resembled Kikyou, or the way she was different from Kikyou? Inuyasha couldn't decide. He moved to go around Kagome, but she used her outstretched hand to grab his a rm. He flinched at the contact, and looked at her to demand that she let him go immediately, but stopped when he saw the look on her face. Her forehead was creased, due to her furrowed eyebrows, and her eyes…They held so much emotion; anxiousness, fear, and there was even room for adventure. Inuyasha shook his head trying to clear if of these thoughts. 

'She's just a weak human! But…What is that power I sense? What could it hurt to help her? Only your reputation and dignity!' Inuyasha argued with himself. 'How about I help her out…Then sell her for a price…' He deviously planned. 

"Alright…I don't really know what's going on, but I'll try to help," Inuyasha finally said, sounding like he was giving in. 

"Thank you," Kagome said, relieved. The two sat down on the soft grass.

"So, uh, what exactly are you doing here?"

"See, that's just it, I don't know. I was just on my way to school and went-"

"School?" Inuyasha interrupted, confused.

"You know, where you go to learn things?"

"Oh, right," he covered, pretending he knew exactly what she was talking about. 

"Okay, so yeah. I went to go help Souta, my little brother, find our cat, Buyo. I was by the well, and this centipede thing dragged me through the well over here. Then those demons came out and started chasing me, then I met you," Kagome explained.

"Well, uh, um, okay. You were right, I'm different then most demons, I'm a- a"

"A what?"

"A hanyou, okay?" Seeing the confused look on her face, he explained, embarrassed. "My mother was a human, my father a demon. I'm shunned as much as the human slaves."

"Human what?" Kagome asked, horrified. 

"Human slaves, for the demons. Mostly servants and concubines. All humans are looked down upon, except for very powerful priestess" Once Inuyasha started talking about mikos, he got another odd look on his face. Without another word, he got back up and began walking away.

"Wait! I'm still confused," Kagome called, getting up and following him.

"So am I," he quietly replied.

"Where are you going?"

"Kaede's," Inuyasha answered, as if that one name explained everything. Kagome was suddenly intimidated by him. He never objected to her following him, so she took that as a good sign. But after walking for a while, Kagome began to get tired.

"Um, Inuyasha? How far to this Kaede's?" 

"Not very," he said. Kagome breathed a sigh of relief. Her curiosity eventually got the better of her.

"So, uh, who is Kaede?" Inuyasha didn't say anything for a few minutes.

'She doesn't need to know, this doesn't concern a human like her. But if u want her to trust you…'

"Kaede is the sister of the miko who pinned me to that tree."

"Kikyou?" Kagome asked. Inuyasha started at the name.

"Yes, her." 

"Is Kaede a slave, too?" She questioned. 

"No, she also is a miko, although, many demons disrespect her."

"Why?"

"Because they think she is not powerful, especially now that she is becoming an old woman," Inuyasha explained, becoming quite irritated. Kagome knew she should be quiet, but she just had to ask.

"How is she old if you're not?"

"I am a demon. And I have been stuck to a freaking tree for the past fifty years. End of discussion. 

'He really doesn't want to talk about it,' Kagome thought, regretting that she had pressed the subject so much. 'I'll just have to wait until we get to Kaede's. I hope she can answer my questions. And Inuyasha's, too. I wonder what he doesn't understand that a human can help him with.'

AN: Wahoo!! Another chapter finished. And I made it a bit longer, because that's what reviewers wanted. And I think fanfiction.net is going to actually let me login…Oh wow it did. I know that chapter was a bit confusing but if you have any questions just ask in reviews or email me. I think I'll be able to stay on schedule now and get the next chapter out by next week, or even sooner. Thanks for reading! 


	3. Explanations

Authors Note: I'm so sorry! But I've been really busy, which is very unusual for summer, and haven't had a chance to type up the chapter. For a while, I couldn't find my notebook, then fanfiction.net wasn't up and I had all sorts of problems…But now it's finally here! Thanks sooooo much to everybody who reviewed the first two chapters so far; Oneesan no Miroku Houshi, Moon Fairy, DarkFuce, Tiggr, RazzyLover44, NightShade, Divine-Heart, and Inutori! Hope this chapter explains everything…Well at least a little more. 

Disclaimer: Oh my…I forgot my disclaimer in the past two chapters…Isn't that convenient? Actually I really did forget it so here it is…I don't own Inuyasha, Rumiko Takahashi does…Now that that's done!

Live To Serve…Serve To Live

Chapter Three: Explanations

By: Black Heart

~*~

Kagome and Inuyasha had been walking for what had seemed like forever. Inuyasha stopped so suddenly, that Kagome ran into his back. 

"Alright," he stated

"Alright? Alright what?" She asked. 

"We're stopping for the night."

"What? I thought you said it wasn't far to Kaede's!" Kagome exclaimed.

"Well, it's not, but when you're walking this slow, I takes longer!" Inuyasha argued back. 

"Fine, I'll just keep going by myself, then," she stubbornly said.

"No, you won't."

"Why not?" Kagome persisted. 

"One, this place is full of demons, and everyone of them would either rip you to pieces or make you their slave. Two you don't even know how to get to Kaede's." Kagome didn't say anything. Inuyasha took her silence as his victory, and began building a fire. 

"I'm going to find some food," he announced. Kagome had only sat down for a few minutes when Inuyasha returned with a small deer. He began to tear it apart, separating the meet from everything else. Kagome turned to face the other way; the sight was just too gruesome. Eventually, the deer was cooked, and the two ate in silence. When she finished, Kagome relaxed and looked up at the sky. It was so late, that little diamonds of stars began appearing in the black velvety sky. After a while, she heard a rustling noise, and reluctantly tore her eyes away from the beautiful sight. Kagome saw that Inuyasha was the source of the noise.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"You do want a place to sleep, don't you?" And Kagome noticed that he was setting up a bed-like structure, consisting of leaves and pines. 

"But, where are you going to sleep?" Inuyasha looked up at a tree that was right next to where Kagome was supposed to sleep. He finished her bed, then went to set up the fire for the night. Kagome crawled onto her makeshift bed, which surprisingly, was very comfortable. There was a breeze of wind, and her raven hair was blown around her face, framing it. Inuyasha's breath caught in his throat as he glanced at her. 

'Was she that pretty the first time I saw her?' He thought to himself. 'Wait, her, pretty? Feh…' When he had finished with the fire, Inuyasha leapt into his tree. He picked a branch where he could keep an eye on Kagome. He didn't want anything to happen to her…She was going to be worth a good sum of money when he sold her. Inuyasha looked up at the near full moon. 'It's almost time,' he thought with a grumpy expression on his face. The wind blew again, this time stronger, and it ruffled Inuyasha's silver hair. 

Down below, Kagome felt the wind, and began shivering. Someone above must have heard, because a few moments later, a red haori dropped down, only a few feet away. Scurrying over to it, Kagome grabbed it and wrapped herself into it, then laid back down. 

"Thanks, Inuyasha," she called up. The only response she got before she fell asleep was a quiet "Feh…" But moments later, after she had fallen asleep, there was a muttered "Your welcome, Kagome…Sweet dreams…"

Just before dawn, Inuyasha awoke, sensing something was wrong. Looking out from his tree, he saw a centipede mononoke coming towards him. Dropping down to the ground, he shook Kagome awake.

"Come on, Kagome," he quietly growled. Her eyes were beginning to slowly flutter open. "There's a centipede demon coming to attack us." Kagome's eyes snapped open, and she bolted up.

"With lots of arms?" She asked.

"Yea, that's why it's the centipede mononoke…Why?" As Inuyasha questioned Kagome's knowledge of the monster, it appeared right behind him.

"There!" Kagome squeaked and pointed at the hideous demon. She went to grab Inuyasha by the waist with one of her many ugly pale arms.

"Where is the Shikon no Tama?" She demanded from Inuyasha. 

"What? Why would I have it?" He snapped back. He struggled, trying to reach his Tetsusaiga.

"Oh, you right…You would have used it to become a full youkai by now if you had it… Then the girl must have it! I sensed it from her earlier," she reasoned and dropped Inuyasha. The centipede made her way over to Kagome, but Inuyasha was quicker. Jumping in between the two, he yelled "Tetsusaiga!" as he sprung above the demon, cutting one side of her arms off as he went. But an arm from her other side swung at him and knocked the Tetsusaiga out of his hands.

"You think that's all it takes to get rid of me? Yea right…" Inuyasha scoffed. The centipede lunged at him, but he slashed her to pieces before she could even touch him. She was dead. Inuyasha turned around to see Kagome starting blankly at him, with her jaw open in shock.

"Come on, let's get going to Kaede's," he said, picking up his red haori from the ground where Kagome had left it. He began walking away and she could only gape at him. Following him, the two began to walk in silence. 

"So, that's why the centipede was after you earlier; You have the Shikon no Tama," Inuyasha eventually said.

"What? Yea…I mean no," Kagome answered.

"Do you have it or not?"

"Yes, but not with me. It's in my time, at my house. Why does everyone want it?

"Because it will grant them an extreme amount of power. It could turn someone like me into a full demon," Inuyasha explained.

"Then couldn't it also make you a full human?" Kagome asked.

"Yes," Inuyasha replied, very quietly. Kagome could see the pain in his eyes and didn't pursue the subject. She knew better now. About twenty minutes later, they came upon a small hut, somehow secluded from the rest of the forest. In the front garden, there was an old woman, bent over the herbs. She looked up with one eye as Inuyasha and Kagome approached. Her other eye was covered by a black patch.

"Inuyasha!" The woman gasped. "I thought you were still bound to that tree!"

"Yea, nice to see you too, you old hag. I'd still be hanging from that tree if she hadn't pulled the arrow out," he explained, jerking his head in Kagome's direction. 

"How could she have-" then Kaede looked at Kagome. "No, it's not Kikyou…" Kaede trailed off.

"Her name's Kagome. She comes from another time," Inuyasha informed. 

"She pulled the arrow out?" Inuyasha nodded. "Then she must be Kikyou's reincarnation." As if she had just realized Kagome was there, Kaede began talking to her. "Do you have the Shikon no Tama?" 

"Not with me," Kagome cautiously answered. 

"Come, child. We have a lot to talk about," Kaede said, leading the way into her small home. Inuyasha and Kagome followed. The hut was small, but still somehow cozy. There was a small table with a few chairs, a bed, and shelves lined with all different sorts of medicines. The three sat at the table, and Kaede studied Kagome. 

"So, um, could you explain things?" Kagome asked.

"Explain what?" Kaede said quizzically. 

"Just about everything," Kagome said. 

"Well, even I don't know everything, you two will have to help…Where to start…"

"At the beginning?" Kagome offered. 

"Alright…Well, you know how humans are slaves. It's always been like that. But before, the humans demons respected, mikos, could protect certain humans. My sister, Kikyou, protected our family. About fifty years ago, Kikyou met a hanyou. She couldn't protect him, because he was part demon. But, never the less, they fell in-"

"I'm going outside!" Inuyasha barked, interrupting the story. Kagome looked at Kaede, wondering what was wrong with him.

"He doesn't know the whole story…He's just a bit touchy about it…" 

'A bit?' Kagome thought. 

"Anyways," Kaede said, moving on. "Kikyou and Inuyasha fell in love, but it was impossible for them to be together. Kikyou wanted Inuyasha to become human. Using the Shikon no Tama, so she could officially protect him from other demons. He agreed to it. But some demons found out about their plan. They wanted the jewel for themselves. They sought help from a powerful demon named Naraku. He wanted Inuyasha's suffering more than the jewel's power. The day Kikyou was bringing Inuyasha the Shikon no Tama, so he could become human, Naraku posed as Inuyasha. He attacked Kikyou and took the jewel for himself. Thinking Inuyasha had betrayed her, Kikyou refused to die until she has revenge. She found him waiting for her under the God tree. Wither her last few breaths, Kikyou shot at Inuyasha with one of her enchanted arrows, pinning him to the tree. But something went wrong with her spell. Inuyasha woke up every ten years, looking for revenge on Kikyou and Naraku," Kaede finished.

"But why does Inuyasha want revenge on Kikyou? It wasn't her fault she thought he betrayed her.

"Well, Naraku wanted Inuyasha to really suffer. He somehow created an illusion of Kikyou saying she loved someone else before shooting at Inuyasha. He doesn't know that part."

"How do you know this isn't another time that Inuyasha woke up and I just pulled the arrow out?"

Because, it hasn't been another ten years. And only Kikyou has the power to remove her arrows. That means you have to be her reincarnation."

"Okay, one more question. What happened to the jewel?" Kagome asked, wondering how she had gained possession of it.

"Naraku was careless, fortunate for us. After his little victory, he went rampaging around to celebrate. He went to attack a demon-exterminating village. They tried to kill him, but only partially succeeded. He disappeared, but is still somewhere out there. The jewel, however, stayed behind. The exterminators brought it back to this village, and it has been passed down, miko to miko." The two sat in silence for a few moments; each lost in their own thoughts.

"You should go get Inuyasha, and we can figure out what you're going to do," Kaede said. Kagome got up to find him, now understanding some of the pain in the hanyou's mysterious golden eyes. 

AN: There you go, the chapter is FINALLY posted. Hope it answered all or at least most of your questions. If not, ask in your review…Sorry again. I'll go start the next chapter right now, so it can be finished sometime this weekend, and posted with in the week…And I really will get it out, because otherwise I'd feel awful, first since I don't consistently update, second because I have a horse show next weekend as well as the next weekend…Then a week later school starts! Where did summer go?!? Oh well…Expect the next chapter soon!! And this is the first time I've bribed for reviews, but when you review I really do start writing…I didn't get some for a while, then I found a review alert in my mailbox and BOOM! The next chapters out. Oh I forgot! My best friend went to this GenCon deal (some gaming convention) in Indianapolis and bought me the first Inuyasha dvd, which has the first 3 episodes SUBTITLED!! I'm so excited!! I just dono when I can actually get it to watch it…Yea I'm going to go start writing now…Really…


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